Ivory netsuke attributed to Yoshinaga, reclining horse (1730 - 1770)

The reclining stallion lies with its hind legs tucked to one side and the forelegs bent up, as if preparing to rise, the heavy mane falls to each side of its neck and the tail flicks around the right haunch, the hair work is incised in long overlapping strokes and stained dark, the eyes inlaid in black horn, unsigned.

Yoshinaga is believed to have been one of the earliest masters of the Kyoto school. The similarity of some of his work to that of Masanao has led some experts to suggest that he may have been the latter's teacher. Certainly, horses by Masanao (for example see MCI p. 439) bear very close comparison to this model, particularly in the treatment of the horse's head and the distinctive cut of the mane.